Plus
by sweetsheart
Summary: Gracia's voice is shaky and she seems worried about something. Maes drops everything and gets home as fast as he can.  No spoilers, pre-anime MaesxGracia.


**A/N: This is set before the anime/manga. So, nothing that's affected these characters in the anime/manga is happening here. Okay? :) Oh, I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist. Damn.**

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><p>aes Hughes made his usual daily stroll to the communal phones at his workplace. The secretary, who was worried if he didn't turn up, waved as he walked to the second booth from the end and dialled in his home phone number. It rang only once before his relatively new wife, Gracia, answered. That was a quick answer, even for her.<p>

"Hello?" Gracia asked, her voice weaker than usual.

"Gracia! How are you?" Maes asked. When he didn't get a reply, he was worried.

"Gracia…Gracia, are you alright?" Maes asked.

"I… I don't know. I think I need you home, Maes." Gracia replied. Maes' eyes widened.

"I-I'll get home as soon as I can! Hold tight, Gracia, darling!" Maes said. He hung the phone up and raced past the secretary back into the room where he and his colleagues worked. Luckily, the man he had to talk to in order to go home was in there.

"Ah, Roy!" Maes exclaimed. Roy Mustang rolled his eyes and turned around to face the older man.

"Yes, Hughes?" he asked.

"I need to go home." Maes fretted.

"Why? You don't seem ill." Mustang replied. Maes shook his head.

"No, something's wrong with Gracia. She said she needs me home." Maes exclaimed. Mustang rubbed his temples in annoyance.

"Alright, alright, go, I'll cover for you. But, if anyone asks, be prepared to fake a deathly illness very quickly." Mustang said, exasperatedly. Maes nodded and began to shake Mustang's hand in his usual, overenthusiastic fashion.

"Oh, thank you, Roy, I usually wouldn't ask, it's just that Gracia-" Maes began. Mustang pulled his hand away.

"Go before I change my mind." Mustang deadpanned. Maes nodded swiftly.

"Thanks again, Roy." Maes replied, turning around and walking out of the room. He began to walk faster as he left the building and caught the fastest transportation home to his wife.

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><p>Maes finally arrived at the apartment building he and his wife lived in. He walked in the door and up the stairs to his apartment. He caught his breath before walking in the door. He saw Gracia sitting on the couch, not looking particularly ill. Her face lit up when she saw him walk through the door.<p>

"Oh, Maes, thank goodness you're home." Gracia said, standing up and running over to her husband, hugging him and pecking him on the lips.

"Gracia, what's the matter, you said that you needed me home immediately. You don't seem ill." Maes repeated Mustang's words from earlier.

"That's because I'm not ill. Sort of." Gracia said. Maes raised an eyebrow and pressed his glasses up over the bridge of his nose.

"Then why do you need me home? And what do you mean 'sort of'?" Maes asked. Gracia sighed.

"Well, I've been feeling a little sick, and tired, so I took a test." Gracia asked, a small smile appearing on her face. Maes' face dropped.

"W-What?" Maes asked, his expression blank.

"I took a _test_." Gracia said, no longer able to stop the wide smile that was plastered on her face.

"O-Okay… Now I'm confused." Maes said. Gracia rolled her eyes and took Maes' hand in her own. She lead him over to the bathroom and picked up the small pregnancy test which sat on the basin. The small window had a plus sign in it.

"You're going to be a father." Gracia smiled. Maes had trouble processing the information at first.

"Y-You're _pregnant_?" he asked, dumbstruck. Gracia's face dropped slightly.

"W-Well, yes, but I thought you'd be happy…" Gracia said. Maes shook his head.

"Of course I'm happy! I'm _overjoyed_! Gracia, we're having a baby! A baby of our very own!" Maes said, resisting the urge to pick his wife up and spin her around for the sake of the growing life inside of her.

"Really?" Gracia said, the smile reappearing on her face.

"Of course!" he said, kissing his wife on the forehead.

"So you're happy we're having a baby?" Gracia asked.

"Happy? Happy doesn't _begin_ to explain the feelings! I'm going to be a papa! And you're going to be a mama!" Maes smiled, walking behind Gracia and wrapping his arms around her waist, resting his hands on her stomach. She slid her hands over his and smiled.

"We're going to be parents." She smiled.

* * *

><p>Mustang, Fuery, Falman, Breda, Havoc and Hawkeye were sitting around with very little to do.<p>

"I wonder what's wrong with Mrs Hughes…" Fuery said, leaning on his arm. Just then, Mustang's intercom buzzed. He clicked it on and listened.

"Hughes is on the line, sir." The secretary said. Mustang sighed and replied.

"Okay." Mustang said, clicking the intercom off and picking up his phone.

"Hughes? How is Gra-" Mustang began when he was put off by a yelling voice on the other end of the line.

"_Hughes!_ Don't speak so loudly! What's wrong?" Mustang asked. Hughes' voice quietened and Mustang finally understood what he has saying. A small smirk appeared on Mustang's face.

"Congratulations, Hughes. Give my best wishes to Gracia. Alright, goodbye." Mustang said, hanging up the phone. As he turned around, he saw five sets of eyes on him.

"What was it, sir?" Hawkeye asked. Mustang nodded.

"Mrs Hughes is expecting." Mustang said. The group of employees began to talk between themselves.

"Does that mean that Hughes will be allowed more personal phone calls?" Hawkeye asked Mustang. He shook his head insistently.

"No way," he began, "He already makes too many as it is."

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><p>Maes and Gracia were lying on the couch, Maes lying behind Gracia with his arms firmly wrapped around her waist. It was about nine pm, nine pm on the day he first found out he was going to be a father.<p>

"So, what do you want? A boy or a girl?" Gracia asked, her eyes closed.

"I don't mind. Not a bit." Maes replied, quietly. Gracia smiled.

"Neither do I." Gracia smiled, wordlessly curling her body up to align with Maes'. He smiled as he brushed her hair out of his face.

"It's going to be a lot of work." Maes said. Gracia slid her hand backwards to entwine with Maes'.

"I know… but we've got each other." Gracia said, quietly. Maes smiled.

"Well, our child is going to be _very_ lucky to have a mother like you." He whispered in her ear. Gracia felt a blush run across her pale cheeks.

"Oh, shush. You'll make a great dad." Gracia replied. Maes chuckled slightly and pulled his and Gracia's intertwined hands back over her stomach.

"What about names? We shall have to think of names." Maes said. Gracia smiled.

"I was thinking that, if it's a boy, we could name him after you." Gracia said, awaiting her husband's response.

"Well, would you really want him to take after me?" Maes asked, smirking slightly.

"Of course I would!" Gracia exclaimed.

"Well, I'm honoured." Maes replied.

"You should be." Gracia smiled.

"So, what if it's a girl?" Maes asked.

"I like the name Elicia for a girl." Gracia said, quietly. Maes smiled.

"That's a perfect name." he said, quietly. He knew Gracia; she'd probably had those names planned for a while. Gracia yawned slightly; even though she was only probably about a month along, the fatigue was taking its toll. Maes sat her up slightly.

"Come on, let's get you into bed." Maes said, wrapping one arm under Gracia's shoulders, the other under the back of her knees. He picked her up, gently, and she closed her eyes and buried her head into his chest.

"I love you, Maes." She muttered, sleepily. Maes smiled to himself.

"I love you too, Gracia." He replied, carrying her across the threshold of the bedroom and laying her dainty frame down on the bed. He pulled the covers, which were rolled up at the end of the bed, over her legs, then her stomach, then up to her shoulders. She sighed contentedly and closed her eyes completely as Maes laid down next to her.

"Goodnight, Gracia." Maes said, pulling her over to gently lie against his chest.

"Goodnight, Maes." Gracia sighed contentedly, nuzzling into his chest. Maes kissed her on the forehead and wrapped his hands around her waist, resting his hands on her back.

"Goodnight, baby." he whispered. Gracia heard and smiled, looking up at her husband.

He was perfect. Well, if not, he was pretty damn close. He was the perfect husband for her. And he was going to be the perfect father for their child.

Gracia fell asleep in her husband's arms. Maes looked down at his sleeping wife. She was going to make an amazing mother. He was the only person in the world that he could imagine mothering his children.

Neither Maes nor Gracia quite knew what the next few days, weeks, months or years would hold. However, that day, they didn't care.

All they cared about was each other and the little life growing inside of Gracia.


End file.
